


Limits Don't Exist

by jstrattford



Series: The logic of infinity [1]
Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Fluff, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-21
Updated: 2015-07-21
Packaged: 2018-04-10 06:32:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 16,185
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4380905
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jstrattford/pseuds/jstrattford
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Niall has always struggled in math, and it just so happens that he stumbles across someone who’s an expert at it.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Limits Don't Exist

**Author's Note:**

> I had first posted this [fic](http://arie-172.tumblr.com/post/65864346672/limits-dont-exist) on my tumblr so many months ago (more than a year ago) and it's the first fic I've ever written (which will also explain why it's a really different writing style from my current fics). For obvious reasons this fic holds a close place to my heart, and although I will go on about how much I don't like this, it'll probably be that one fic that if I ever wanted to share with people, it'd be this one. Due to a bit of encouragement, I've decided to finally post it here. So here we go. I hope you guys enjoy.

“Can anyone tell me the answer?” Ms. Adams asked, looking around the room full of uninterested students.

Like every other day, the room was full of an incredibly loud chatter, but like always, it was for all the _wrong_ reasons.

Most students only appeared to be interested in talking amongst each other about how bummed they were that ‘Breaking Bad’ had ended, and Ms. Adams couldn't help but sigh from seeing the lack of interest in her students. It had become the typical behavior of them because math was just not a subject that interested them, and it wasn't exactly helpful that it was right after the weekend either.

It was just one of those typical Mondays in which the students were recovering from their weekend adventures and keeping a close eye on the clock, as if doing so would somehow magically make it go faster. To no avail, of course, because the hands of the clock seemed to be moving at an incredibly slow speed, but it didn't make much of a difference to Niall, who's anxiously looking at Ms. Adams, waiting for whatever came next.

_No._

Time _didn't_ matter to Niall because he had more important things to worry about.

Niall was one of the select few who had actually been paying attention to Ms. Adams, sitting in the front row with a pencil in hand as he listened intently to Ms. Adams’ lecture. It's a bit strange to him because Ms. Adams had the tendency to talk about math as it were some sort of championship game that had gone into overtime, but also because he _never_ sat in the front.

Usually, Niall liked sitting in the back with Louis and Liam, but it was a proven problem for Niall because Louis distracted him easily, asking him too many questions or telling him some “amazing” story, which Niall welcomed in his other classes but couldn’t afford in his Calculus class. He knew that he wouldn’t be able to make progress if he listened to Louis talk about how long he was able to do a keg stand, and that the only way he would truly be able to concentrate was to sit in the front.

It took him a big amount of willpower taking a seat so close to the board, but it was exactly what he did when he entered his Calculus class, knowing very well that it wouldn’t go unnoticed.

Louis and Liam shot him a couple of questioning looks when they entered the class, blinking multiples times as they squinted their eyes to get a better look at him. Seeing Niall in the front row was strange to them because they knew of his strong dislike of the front row, but Niall shrugged them off with a “we’ll talk later” look, taking a deep breath in his exhaustion. They were clearly confused by Niall’s actions but nodded and made their way to their usual spot, much to Niall’s relief.

Niall's certain that he would have to answer a lot of questions (mainly from Louis) but it didn't really matter to him because he _needed_ to be in the front. It was the only way he could improve his very nonexistent " _math_ _skills_ ".

“Anyone?” asked Ms. Adams again, breaking Niall away from his thoughts as Ms. Adams scanned her eyes across the room. Niall thought it was kind of silly of her to ask when she knew very well that no one was interested, but Niall did like her persistence. It wasn’t common in most teachers because they usually let their students do as they pleased, and spent the rest of their “lesson” sitting at their desks, but Ms. Adams was an exception. Although, her efforts were often in vain.

Most students didn’t care enough to pay attention - Niall being one of the few who did care - but it was more or less because he didn’t understand the problem. He honestly doubted he would be paying the same amount of attention if he actually knew what he was doing. It had become somewhat normal of him to get lost whenever the topic of limits came into discussion, and today’s lesson was no exception.

 _Not again_ , Niall thought, vigorously erasing the writing on his paper, frustrated with not comprehending what Ms. Adams had just explained.

It was a basic problem, probably even an easy one, but it was one of the most complicated things he'd ever been asked to do.

Niall could feel the frustration building at the core of his stomach as he read the problem for what appeared to be the hundredth time, knitted brows scrunching close together because the numbers mixed together on his paper made absolutely no sense, but then again, they've always had that effect on him.

The numbers and words always, _alway_ s intimidated him, and he could never count on Ms. Adams’ explanations either because she explained things far too quickly, as if she assumed that they were all at the same comprehension level. The way Niall saw it, she might as well be talking to him in Japanese because his understanding would be the same.

Niall cleared the big lump in his throat as he studied the slightly visible pencil marks on his paper. It was going to be a long day (he's certain of that much), noticing a hand swinging widely in the air that belonged to someone who _was_ an expert at math.

“No, Styles.” Ms. Adams exhaled, looking slightly irritated from seeing only one person expressing interest because it was the same person who always solved the problems.

Styles, otherwise known as Harry, abruptly put his hand down with a frown on his face, eyes carving into Ms. Adams in a crossed manner. Ms. Adams, of course, doesn't notice. Or if she does, it doesn't appear to bother her, more focused on finding another victim.

“Let someone else answer,” Ms. Adams said, observing the class with her calculating eyes.

 _Not again_ , thought Niall, looking at Harry who's now scowling.

Niall had felt some relief seeing Harry put his hand up that quickly because he had assumed Ms. Adams would let Harry answer, and judging from the slightly irritated expression on Harry’s face, he must have also been expecting the same thing.

It was surprising to see Harry get upset about not getting to solve a problem because Niall didn’t think it was possible to like math that much. Fun and math never went in the same sentence to express joy, as far as Niall was concerned. The only things Niall associated math with were headaches and migraines. It was foreign seeing math produce such a genuine interest from someone that didn't resemble a pain, but undoubtedly Harry thought differently, as evidenced by the way his face lit up every time he set foot in this class - a fact Niall couldn't comprehend.

“Anyone else?” Ms. Adams asked in a much louder voice, instantly catching Niall's attention when her eyes begin scanning the room again, setting her gaze on Niall and _oh_. He's extremely familiar with that look.

Niall quickly lowered his gaze, feeling his heartbeat rapidly increase and making loud thuds. He knew that perhaps it was silly and childish, but it had become his way of avoiding being called on, working for the majority of the time too. And, he hoped that it would work once again because he really didn’t want Ms. Adams to see how lost he was (once again).

Niall could feel an incredibly loud pounding in his chest from sensing Ms. Adams’ brown eyes on him, but he continued looking down at his paper. He wouldn't look up. He _won't_ look up. He won't-

“Horan.” Ms. Adams spoke in a very soothing voice, but it replicated the sound of a hiss to Niall’s ears. Slowly, Niall removed his gaze from his paper, tentatively looking up at Ms. Adams. She was smiling softly at him, which Niall assumed was her way of trying to look friendly, but it looked much more sinister than encouraging.

“Can you tell us the answer?” Ms Adams asked in a very sweet voice, taunting and insincere to Niall.

 _Absolutely not_ , Niall bitterly thought, looking everywhere else but directly at Ms. Adams. Niall mentally cursed himself for choosing to sit in the front, thinking that this would have never happened if he had sat in the back.

Niall let out a small grunt, knowing it was pointless of him to pretend to know, and just as he's about to tell Ms. Adams that he doesn't know how to solve it, he catches sight of the paper of the kid, Andy, next to him, pausing with the words hanging at his lips. He's always adamantly objected copying from others but it was either that or public humiliation from Ms. Adams, so he took a breath, squinting to read the numbers off of Andy's paper.

“Um, the limit does not exist,” Niall replied, wincing slightly from having to resort to cheating, but promising himself that he would go home and do an extra set of problems in addition to his current assignment.

“That’s correct Horan. Can you show us how you got the answer?” Ms. Adams asked, not missing a beat.

Niall felt the lump return to his throat, eyes not leaving Ms. Adams.

She had never asked him to go to the board before, so why was she asking him _now?_ It was one thing to be asked to give an answer, but it was a completely different thing to be asked how to solve it. How was he supposed to solve something he didn’t know how to do?

Niall blinked a couple of times, with his palms starting to sweat, knowing exactly that there was no way he could get out of this one. He looked into Ms. Adams’ razor-like eyes; he was at her mercy.

Niall’s grip on his pencil tightened as he tried to communicate with Ms. Adams through his pained eyes. Ms. Adams must have noticed the inner turmoil in Niall’s head because her expression changed.

Her eyebrows rose and the corner of her lips lowered into a downward expression, eyes glancing at Niall’s hand holding the pencil as she made her way to his desk. It felt like her steps were extra cautious, almost as if she was afraid she would scare Niall away, and paused when she reached his desk and examined his blank sheet.

Niall folded his hands on top of his lap, cheeks starting to taint with a faint amount of red, feeling as if Ms. Adams was examining him with a microscope. He was unable to remain still, fidgeting and having both his thumbs play their own game of thumb war with one another.

Niall avoided looking directly at Ms. Adams because he had a fairly good idea about the look on her face and he didn’t need another reason to feel like a failure.

The chatter in the class was a bit loud - a sign that the students weren’t paying attention - and for once Niall was thankful for it. They were far too consumed in conversation to even pay attention to Niall, although he did see Harry glance his way before quickly looking back down at his sheet. Niall squirmed in his seat, telling himself that it was because of Ms. Adams’ attention on him and not because of Harry.

It felt like an eternity of the horrible inspection until Ms. Adams finally cleared her throat and spoke.

“On second thought, let’s get someone else to participate. We can’t let you have all the fun, Horan.” Ms. Adams turned her head to face the only person who would be interested in participating in the “fun.”

“Styles, would you mind showing us?”

It wasn’t necessary for her to finish the rest of the sentence because Harry was already making his way to the board as soon as he heard her call his name.

“We’ll talk after class,” Ms. Adams whispered to Niall as she made her way back towards the board.

Niall nodded slightly, not taking his eyes away from his paper, and trying to recover from what felt like the 5 longest minutes in his life. It was mortifying being called out in front of the class, and he was a bit upset with Ms. Adams, but he knew that it wasn’t really her fault. It’s not like it was her mission to make Niall feel lousy so he couldn’t really blame her. It was his own fault, not Ms. Adams’ fault.

He should know this by now. He really _should_ , but the task of conquering limits seemed almost impossible. Niall tried solving problems from his textbook, but each night ended with him pulling at his hair until he gave himself a headache, unable to even scratch at the surface of each key points, resulting in more despair on his part. He had always known that he would need to work harder because he was rubbish at math, but it was discouraging to see that all his hours were producing no real progress. He just wasn't graced with those skills (unlike _some_ individuals), he thought, watching with fascination as Harry wrote down one last number before placing the chalk back down.

“Thank you, Styles,” Ms. Adams said as a very satisfied Harry made his way back to his seat. He was smiling softly, obviously pleased with himself, looking at the board as it if it were some piece of art. It looked like random gibberish to Niall, but it was impressive how fast Harry solved it. It only took Harry a matter of seconds, making Niall envious with how effortless he made it seem, but he couldn’t expect any less from him because Harry was the smartest in the class.

True, there were other smart kids, but none of them could reach Harry’s level.

For as long as Niall could remember, Harry had always thrived in his subjects. He was the only familiar face receiving all the academic awards. Science award? Check. Reading award? Check. Math award? It wasn’t even up for discussion.

Harry was extremely gifted, with math seemingly being his holy grail. He didn’t even need to study and he could still get the highest score. He was just _that_ good, but he wasn’t exactly the most social person, choosing to spend his time with textbooks instead of people.

Niall couldn’t recall a time in which he didn’t see Harry with a math textbook. Harry had the custom of keeping his head in his textbook, eyes lighting up whenever he saw a math problem, and not bothering to talk to anyone while he focused on reading his textbook. Just based on that reaction, Niall could tell that math was probably the only thing Harry really cared about. His demeanor and his clothes were a testament to it too.

He wore glasses that were much too big with a collared shirt buttoned up to his neck, which always made Niall wonder how he could breathe with a shirt that was practically choking him. Niall noticed that Harry was the type of person who didn’t seem to care about things that would worry the average person. He was his own person, ignoring the looks he received from other students when he chose to read his textbook instead of interacting with others. Niall couldn’t help but think of a mad scientist whenever he looked at Harry. He fit the typical description of a, well, of a “ _nerd_ ,” but he was one with a certain aura.

There was just something about Harry that sparked an interest from Niall, although he would never admit it aloud or to anyone else. It wasn’t that Niall was ashamed of his feelings, but it had to do more with the fact that he wasn’t sure what to call it because he never really had any experience in that department.

Niall sighed, feeling slightly better, as he ran his fingers through his hair. It didn’t feel nearly as soft as Harry’s curly hair looked, and Niall wondered what type of shampoo Harry used as he continued studying Harry’s face.

Niall let his guard down and allowed himself to observe Harry, roaming Harry’s face until he reached his eyes. He almost immediately regretted it because Harry wasn’t looking at the board as he thought. As was expected with his rotten luck, Harry was looking directly at _him_.

 _Nooooo. Why??_ Niall thought, stilling in his chair.

Harry’s eyebrows were slightly raised, looking fairly surprised as he continued looking into Niall’s eyes.

It felt like the millionth time that day that Niall felt the heat reach his cheeks, but he couldn’t control it with Harry staring at him so intently. There were several emotions plastered on Harry’s face, making it difficult for Niall to read, and making him feel nauseous. He was unsure of how to react because those green eyes were somehow even more overwhelming than limits - as hard as it was for him to believe. The only thing he could think of to get out of it was to pretend to sneeze and use it as his excuse to turn his direction towards Ms. Adams and her Calculus problems.

Ms. Adams was still busy explaining the problem that Harry had just solved and Niall should probably have been listening, but he was having trouble concentrating on math or anything else for that matter.

He didn’t know why he felt uncomfortable looking Harry in the eye. Maybe it was because he got caught, or because they didn’t really have that type of relationship where one could stare freely at the other. Heck, they hardly had a relationship, although they had been in the same math class for the past 5 years.

If Niall were to be asked to estimate how many words he had exchanged with Harry in the time he knew him, it would probably be less than 1,000, but Niall could still remember them all. He remembered each of their encounters, not fully understanding how it was possible for him to do so, but there was always one encounter in particular that stood out to him, and it was about 4 years ago in their math class out of all places too.

The class had just been lectured about a way to write words using math, and although it didn’t really have to do with any of their previous lessons, it was a lot more interesting. The class had been given a worksheet that showed how each number represented a letter.

Niall actually enjoyed the lesson because it was as if it was some sort of secret communication and the problems were simple. The only complicated thing was solving the phrases, but that itself wasn’t too bad. It was fairly tolerable to Niall, challenging him in a way he liked being tested, because where else but in a math class could 33=A and 102=E?

It was a huge change to Niall because each problem made his confidence soar, and that day he left class feeling rejuvenated. It was nice receiving positive feedback for once and not having to second-guess himself.

Niall remembered how he actually looked forward to working on his worksheet when he arrived home. He had even hurriedly opened his Adidas backpack looking for his textbook as soon as he was able to find the time to sit still. It wasn’t until he opened his textbook that he realized he had also taken Harry’s paper by mistake. It had Harry written on the top right corner, but there was no other writing on it. It was a bit strange to Niall, but he decided to wait until the next day to return his paper.

That day itself felt strange.

Niall could recall how much he had been fidgeting earlier in his history class. He could recall looking for Harry around school until he found him near his locker. He could recall the blue jumper that Harry was wearing as he sprinted towards him, and he could still recall how anxious he felt tapping Harry on the shoulder, barely able to muster a “hi,” as he extended his arm with the paper in his hand.

There was a long silence between them and Harry had an unreadable expression on his face as he studied Niall’s face. It felt eerie to Niall being stared at so closely, and it must have been a good ten seconds before Harry finally took the paper away from Niall’s hands and sprinted away from him, not giving him a chance to speak.

It had caught Niall off guard seeing someone react so negatively to him. He sort of figured that they would share a laugh about it and possibly become friends, but Harry looked as if he needed to get away from Niall.

It was as if Harry couldn’t bear being near Niall, and it was perplexing because Niall didn’t understand what he did to make Harry so upset. It couldn’t have been something he said because he hardly spoke, so Niall figured it must have been something he did. What that was, he wasn't sure, but he made it his goal to apologize to Harry for whatever he did.

However, the problem with that was there was _never_ an opportune moment.

Harry always ran off right after class finished, leaving Niall to chase after him in an attempt to catch up, but he was never fast enough. It limited Niall’s opportunities to talk to him, and it bothered him seeing Harry run away from him as if he was some sort of fatal disease.

Niall came up with several reasons as to why Harry avoided him but in the end decided that Harry just didn’t like him. He had to accept the fact that Harry didn’t want to talk to him, and he didn’t feel like forcing Harry into doing something he obviously didn’t want to do. Niall just wasn’t that type of person, and he didn’t think that there was any point in trying. He gave up soon after, thinking that it was pointless, but what he always failed to see was Harry gazing at him whenever he wasn’t looking.

Niall shook his head trying to shake away these memories along with the occurrences from the last 20 minutes. He needed to worry about the present not the past, but it was proving to be very difficult because although Niall had turned his attention back to the board, he could feel Harry closely watching him.

*

“Class dismissed,” called out Ms. Adams, voice stern. Niall was normally happy to hear that statement, but he was now dreading it because he knew that he would have to talk to her about his dilemma that had been plaguing him for quite some time, unfortunately so.

Louis and Liam passed Niall's desk slowly with confusion laced in their facial expressions, but he nodded his head to Ms. Adams, indicating that he had to talk to her. Louis looked a little dubious but let it pass and patted Niall on the back.

“We’ll talk later,” Niall muttered, as he watched his friends leave the classroom of hell, and no sooner than when they did leave did he hear Ms. Adams' voice fill the room.

“Niall," she called out cooly, despite Niall's frown beginning to mark his face. "May I please speak to you?” Ms. Adams’ evil voice asked him.

With a very reluctant nod, Niall gathered his books, making his way to her desk. The class was beginning to empty - only with a couple of people still in the room - (one of which was Harry) but they seemed more preoccupied with getting out of class than with the pending conversation between Ms. Adams and Niall.

“Make yourself comfortable,” Ms Adams said, clearing the board as Niall took a seat. His eyes immediately landed on the various sheet of papers on Ms. Adams’ desk (probably papers from her other classes), all bleeding with red marks.

Ms. Adams didn’t appear to notice Niall’s jaw drop open from looking at the injured papers, though, because she was finishing erasing her board. Niall shook his head in disbelief as he moved his attention to Ms. Adams, and he couldn’t help but think that it almost seemed like she was waiting for everyone in class to leave, as he watched her slowly erase the board.

Ms. Adams was a lot of things but she wasn't as inconsiderate of her students’ feelings as Niall had thought. She was a lot more conscious than she let on, Niall thought, as she waited until the final person, Harry, made his way outside to turn her full attention to Niall.

But Niall immediately wished she hadn’t done so, as she took her seat, eyes locking with Niall’s eyes.

“Niall, what happened today?” Ms. Adams asked suddenly, as Niall began feeling his muscles tense. She was far too close for Niall’s liking. He could see the freckles on her face and the concern flashing in her eyes as she studied his face.

“You couldn’t answer a basic question.” She paused, wrestling with how to word her next sentence. “I know that you’ve been having trouble in the class, but this isn’t like you.”

Niall remained quiet, tapping his foot at an incredibly fast speed, unable to contain it.

“You’ve been doing fine with everything else, but you froze today when we talked about limits.” _So she had noticed_ , thought Niall, grazing his knuckles against each other. He assumed that this was the first time, and realizing it wasn’t made him feel even worse, fighting back the breaths wanting to escape from his mouth.

“I'm really concerned. You really need to try and do better, Niall.” Niall frowned slightly, because did she really think that? Niall thought about the irony in her statement because she wouldn’t be saying that if she saw how hard he worked.

“I am trying, Ms. Adams,” he stated with a strong sense of conviction in his voice.

Ms. Adams’ expression softened, taking in a small breath. “I know you are. But you really need to do more.” Niall’s eyebrows rose slightly. How on earth was it possible for him to do more if he was already spending hours everyday working solely on math? There was just no way he could do that, Niall thought, curious at her hinting tone.

“How?” Niall asked slowly, the word dragging out in his tongue with caution.

Ms. Adams opened her drawer, taking out a batch of papers, as the sinking feeling fluctuated in Niall's chest.

“I suggest that you do more problems, and that you get some help in the subject.”

“Help?” questioned a very flustered Niall. He had a sneaky suspicion of what she was going to say.

“A tutor,” Ms. Adams replied, looking through the sheets and stapling them together. “Here. This should be a good way for you to get started.” Ms. Adams shoved the sheets in Niall’s hand, ignoring a gaping Niall as she resumed looking into her drawer. “Now as for the tutor, I have an excellent-”

Niall shook his head with such a force that he heard a small crack. “That won’t be necessary. I already have someone in mind. I don’t need anyone else,” he replied as quickly as possible, getting up from the chair. He knew _exactly_ who she was going to recommend, making his heartbeat go into overdrive.

Ms. Adams titled her head with a slightly amused expression, her eyebrows scrunched together with her eyes peering into Niall, but shook her head. She was obviously wondering about Niall’s sanity (and so was Niall), but she didn’t press on it.

“I expect to see results, Niall,” she said before taking a definitive small pause. Niall swallowed thickly as Ms. Adams gave him that very familiar smile, lips curving up smugly before adding cheekily, “now get out of here before you’re late to class, Horan.”

Which Niall didn't hesitate to do, exiting the room without being told twice.

*

Niall couldn’t get out of Ms. Adams’ classroom at a faster speed.

He rushed towards his locker, not so much because of his fear for being late, but because he needed to get as far away as possible from Ms. Adams.

It was as if she liked scaring her students, and to some extent it did work because Niall could feel the hairs on his arms rise from just thinking about Ms. Adams. He didn’t dislike her, but he didn’t like hearing her tell him such negative things.

Niall knew that their meeting could have honestly been worse, but it dampened his spirits hearing someone tell him he needed to try harder when he really was trying.

The bags underneath his eyes and the death of his social life were a testament to the work he was putting in, but he apparently needed to “try harder.”

Niall sighed as he continued walking down the empty hall. He could really use a tutor, but had the suspicion that Ms. Adams was going to pair him with Harry, which was about the last thing he wanted because it had always made him uneasy being around Harry, ever more so after today when he was caught staring at him. So realistically speaking, it wasn't a viable option in the slightest.

Niall let out a small grunt, knowing there was nothing he could do now, as he walked to his locker.

He began humming “There is a light that never goes out” as he approached his locker, but paused all motions when he noticed a curly haired boy taking books out of his locker. Niall could recognize the owner of the hair if he were a mile away, as he anxiously squeezed his hands in a small fist.

Harry had his books in his hand, threatening to fall out at any moment, double-checking that he had everything before closing his locker. He was wearing the same neutral expression he always had, but there was a small shift in it, almost as if he sensed Niall’s presence. Harry slowly turned his head, and froze on the spot with his eyes locking with Niall’s.

It was strange to Niall because they hadn’t made this much contact in one day since that afternoon 4 years ago, and Niall wondered if maybe he had gotten it all wrong.

It didn’t seem like Harry particularly hated him. He seemed to actually want to initiate more contact with Niall, and just maybe the thought made Niall want to run to the hills.

Niall contemplated if it was too late to turn back, but Harry took a deep breath and started walking towards him before he had the time to react. His eyes were locked on Niall, as Niall finally found the strength in his legs to keep walking.

“Hi,” Harry said in a hesitant voice, pretending but failing to make it sound nonchalant. Niall could hear something else in it, unsure if maybe he was misinterpreting things, shaking his head to push away those thoughts.

“Hey.” Niall muttered as he passed Harry, monotonous and guarded.

Harry usually never made contact with him and when he did it certainly was _never_ on purpose. It was usually on accident whenever he ran into Niall in the crowded halls full of too many people and not enough room, so why was he doing it now?

Niall dwelled on the thought walking into his biology class, and only then did he realize that he had forgotten his biology textbook in his locker.

*

“Niall, are you going to eat?”

Niall’s mother has been calling him for the past 15 minutes with Niall telling her each that he would go down as soon as he finished one last problem. He had been working on the worksheets Ms. Adams had given him for the past two hours, and Niall’s mother had been telling him every 20 minutes that he needed a break, but it wasn’t an option Niall could take.

“I can’t. I need to finish this,” Niall called out, fairly exhausted. He could visualize his mother’s face and practically hear her sighing, but it wasn’t the first time they had this conversation. Niall’s mother was always persistent to get Niall to come down whenever he worked on math, but she gave up knowing just how stubborn her son could be. He was just like her; too strong-headed for his own good.

“Don’t take too long,” she replied in a warning tone.

Niall smiled softly to himself, knowing that she got the message and that there would be no more interruptions, but his silence was broken by his “Boys Don’t Cry” ringtone.

“What?” Niall snarled into his phone, not bothering to look at his caller ID. He was extremely annoyed because he had lost his train of thought, and knew that there was probably only one person who would interrupt him at such a crucial time.

“Niall, what are you up to? Where are you at?” asked an oblivious and very loud voice that could only belong to one person.

“What do you mean where am I at?” Niall ran his hand through his scruffy hair, pulling at the ends. “I’m home, Louis. _Jesus Christ_. Where else would I be?” Niall muttered.

There was a small pause on the other end. “Calm down, old lady,” Louis replied, seemingly not understanding how annoyed Niall was. “There’s a party tonight. You _need_ to come. It’s at-”

“ _No_ ,” spat Niall, cutting Louis off.

“Why not? It’s early and you need to have some fun. Oh, and Rachel won’t be there if that’s what your worried about,” Louis added as an afterthought.

Niall shook his head, hands covering his eyes. He loved his friends, but sometimes they were too much for him to handle.

“I can’t. I’m busy,” he said through clenched teeth, losing his patience.

There was roar of laughter from the other end as if Niall had just told him the funniest joke, but there was nothing remotely funny about the situation to Niall.

 _Relax_ , Niall thought, squeezing the phone with his fingers tightly.

“You’re such a liar. What are you busy with?” Louis questioned. Niall had to bite his tongue as he grabbed on to his pencil. He really didn’t have time for _this_.

“Goodnight, Louis,” he muttered, ending the call before Louis had the chance to reply.

Niall took a small breath before looking back at his textbook, expression softening until he heared his phone ring again. 

Frustrated, Niall picked up his phone, looking at the caller, not surprised to see that it was now Liam who was calling him. It didn’t surprise him because knowing Louis, he probably took Liam’s phone and dialed the number himself.

“So fucking persistent,” Niall mumbled, shutting off his phone. He couldn’t afford to party when he was having trouble with math, the realization hitting him hard in the chest.

Niall grabbed onto the back of his neck, eyes studying the long list of numbers. It was going to be another one of _those_ nights.

*

“My head,” mumbled Niall in a pained voice, head on the lunch table, as he heard Louis and Liam approaching him.

“Where were you last night? We tried calling you but your phone was turned off,” Louis asked, face showing just how annoyed he was that Niall would ignore his call. Niall, however, doesn't notice, grumbling out a small “busy,” not lifting his head because of the little amount of energy that's in his body.

Although his mother had gone into his room and forced him to turn off the lights, he had only gotten 3 hours of sleep and kept waking up, afraid that he would oversleep. He had too many unwanted thoughts that had entered his mind and didn’t leave him alone, coming to the depressing conclusion that he would need to do even more before he could ever feel comfortable with limits. That despite his best efforts, it'd be fruitless because the progress was no where close to what it should be.

Niall let his hands slip out of the sleeves of his jumper, breath slowing down because of the deep sleep he's comfortably falling in to.

“Niall?” Louis has gotten out of his seat to take the one next to Niall, but Niall doesn't notice because his eyes are closed, thinking about how inviting a 5-minute nap looked. Louis sighed, poking Niall on his side, causing Niall’s reflexes to kick in.

“Huh?” Niall muttered, lifting his head. He had forgotten they were talking to him, as he glanced at the cafeteria trays around him, remembering that he was still in school.

“Your phone was off last night.” Louis said exchanging a glance with Liam.

“Evidently,” Niall mumbled, closing his eyes once more.

“Why?” Louis questioned. That was one of the things about Louis. He was always direct with his questions.

“I needed to get some work done. Limits are killing me.” Niall said in a tired voice as he grabbed the bridge of his nose.

Liam and Louis looked at one another. They had always figured that it was best to avoid the subject of math because Niall was sensitive about it, but it felt like it was staring them right in the face and threatening Niall.

It worried them because of the great deal of stress it was bringing Niall too. He had bags underneath his eyes, disheveled hair, and was barely able to keep his eyes open.

He looked an absolute mess, increasing their concern.

“Are you failing?” Louis carefully asked, lacking the irritation that was laced in his voice.

Niall’s eyes shot up open, looking straight at Louis. He was a little offended that his friends would think that, but it disappeared when he saw the way Louis’ eyes were scrunched up, concern written all over his face.

“Thank you for asking, but I’m not. It’s only limits,” Niall defensively responded, reminding himself to remain calm. Liam cleared his throat then looking back at Louis, words threatening to escape his mouth.

“You know we can help,” Louis offered, expression shifting as if to provide support to Niall. It doesn't exactly go well with Niall though, snorting out a bitter chuckle.

“Yeah, I know. But the help I need doesn’t involve copying,” Niall retorted. He knew he was being harsh, but he blamed it on his sleep deprivation.

“That’s not-” Liam began but Louis shushed him. Niall looked at them signaling for them to continue, but saw that neither of them wanted to.

Niall sighed, playing with the crumpled napkin in front of him.“I already talked to Ms. Adams,” Niall replied, not taking his eyes away from the napkin. “I have it figured out,” he said, sounding much more confident than how he actually felt. It was impressive how good he had gotten at lying.

Liam scratched the top of his head, looking carefully at Niall. “What are you going to do?” he curiously asked.

Niall took a deep breath, realizing he would have to tell them more than he anticipated. Niall had expected it to be when he spectacularly aced his test, and referencing it as a thing of the past, not presently when he had forgotten to brush his hair and put on the first shirt he saw.

“Ms. Adams gave me a set of worksheets to practice on. She said that it’ll help me, and that I should get a tutor,” Niall yawned out. At least this wasn’t something he had to lie about, he thought.

They remained silent, Niall not knowing what to say, and Liam and Louis not knowing how to say what they wanted to say. It seemed like no one was going to speak until Liam broke the silence.

“Why don’t you ask help from Styles?”

Louis shot Liam a look that Niall failed to see because there was suddenly not enough air in his system.

“Styles?” Niall muttered out, incredulous. His eyes were probably the size of marbles, but Liam looked at him as if he had said the most natural thing instead of releasing an atomic bomb.

“Yeah. He would help you. Or at least that was the impression I got,” Liam casually said.

Louis’ eyes shot up, eyes silently pleading and trying to communicate with Liam, but Niall wasn’t paying much attention to Louis. There were so many questions entering his mind. How, where, why, but most importantly, since _when_ did Liam talk to Harry??

“What do you mean?” Niall asked in a hushed tone. It was a bit of shock to think that Harry had talked about him, but Liam was talking about it as if it was no big deal. As if Harry was just another random person, which Niall could argue he was, but to him at least, he _wasn't._

Liam shrugged at a gaping Niall, not completely understanding what his revelation was doing to Niall.

“He was asking about you yesterday,” Liam revealed, doing that annoying thing where he's being coy about the situation.

Niall gulped as his eyebrows shot up even higher than before. “He was?” Niall asked, shushing Louis who had made a small sound of protest.

Liam nodded, clearing his throat after haven taken a glance at Louis.

“Since when do you talk to Harry?” Niall questioned. He felt like an interrogator, but the questions were pouring out with no signs of stopping, missing the daggers Louis was shooting at Liam.

“Why is it so surprising that we talk?” Liam asked as he gave a small wave to his friend, Josh, but Niall snapped his fingers in front of Liam’s face, trying to regain his attention.

“Whoa. Okay. _Okay_.” Liam retorted, facing Niall. Niall knew that everything about his behavior would qualify as being bratty, but he desperately needed to know.

“I do have physics with him. He sits next to me,” Liam calmly added, causing Niall to let out a small laugh filled with sarcasm, because in the whole year that they had been in school, Liam had never mentioned it. Not in lunch or when they got together at Niall’s house to hang out, and he seemed to be expecting Niall to know that he shared a class with Harry. He had never even given any sort of indication of even talking to Harry. It was the first time he had even spoken of having some sort of contact with him.

Liam glanced at Louis before continuing, voice going low and hesitant. “We talk. He tells me things sometimes.” _Sometimes_ , thought Niall, wondering what else they could have talked about.

“And I just happened to be one of the things you talked about?” Niall questioned, brows raised high up. Liam carefully looked at Niall, not sure how to answer the question with Louis also watching him with the same intensity.

“Yeah. I mean, it was nothing major, but I got the impression he was worried about you.” Liam replied as if he was trying to backtrack after seeing Louis take the seat next to him.

Niall’s eyes fell to the table in front of him.

Under different circumstances, it would have brought him satisfaction knowing that Harry had been asking about him, but after yesterday’s episode it was about the last thing he wanted to hear. He felt like a fool whenever it came to Harry, letting out a frustrated breath and ripping a small piece of the napkin.

“I don’t think he would want to,” Niall breathed, tearing his eyes back up to Liam and Louis.

Liam and Louis looked at him curiously, expecting Niall to expand on the idea. They knew of Niall’s encounter with Harry those 4 years ago, but they never questioned him about it. In fact, they had actually encouraged Niall to talk to Harry, but Niall was unwilling to make himself look like an even bigger fool, deciding that no meant no.

Louis nudged Liam’s shoulder and Liam nodded, a secretive look on his face.

“I wouldn’t say that. It wouldn’t hurt to ask,” Louis said with a small strain in his voice.

“Maybe,” Niall replied, gathering his books. Liam looked at Louis as if he was asking permission to say something, but Louis shook his head. The moment had passed and it wasn’t their place to say anything else.

Niall deeply sighed, standing up before he lost the strength to do so, his textbook tucked under his arm. 

“I’ve got to go.” 

Liam and Louis exchanged a quick glance before turning to face Niall. “Where are you going?” Liam worriedly asked.

Niall looked at his friends as if it was the most obvious thing in the world and smiled softly. They had no reason to be worried. Or at least, not _yet_.

“To study.”

*

Looking for a good place to study was easy because all Niall had to do was walk around, but finding the _place, his place,_ was the hard part.

He's been walking for about 5 minutes, not quite finding what he was looking for because most places were either occupied by too many people or too noisy for Niall’s liking.

Niall could've easily gone to the library, but he didn’t like libraries because it was a stressful environment that was too quiet. Niall didn’t mind noise as long as it wasn’t people talking about how great the party was or other irrelevant news about celebrities. That type of talk would only distract him, Niall thought, making his way towards the football field.

He knew that it'd be the perfect area too because the field was a much more secluded area, given that it was far away from classes and most students didn’t like rushing to class.

Niall didn’t mind having to rush as long as he could find a good place to study, and upon arriving, he realized that it was indeed empty, making it the ideal place. He was just about to take his seat on the bleachers but he took one glance to his right and he saw it.

_It was his spot._

It was a small grassy area with a small tree planted in the middle. The tree was probably less than 20 feet tall and starting to lose its leaves - with no seats and dead patches of grass surrounding it - but that was its main appeal to Niall. There would be nothing to distract him, he thought, taking a seat and thankful that the grass was dry, as he rested his back on the trunk. The tension was exiting his body and he was full of optimism after having found his spot.

This was it, Niall cheerfully thought.

*

“Damn it!” Niall grunted as he shoved his textbook to the side.

It had only been 5 minutes but he was already fuming.

Niall had made the very foolish decision to start off with limits, knowing very well the danger in doing so. Hands in his hair, Niall put his head down, closing his eyes. Was it really worth putting in the extra effort if the result was the same? He didn’t even see the point in trying if he couldn’t get past one simple problem. Niall sniffed, frustrated with his inabilities.

“You ok?” asked a worried voice and _oh._

Niall quickly opened his eyes, feeling the tension return in his shoulders. He was startled because he was expecting to see someone in front of him, but there was no one in sight.

“Hello?” Niall asked, extremely confused. _Where was that voice coming from?_

“Look up,” said the voice.

Niall let out a small breath, afraid to look up from hearing the familiarity in the voice. He wondered if it was too late to start running and why this always happened to him. However, the voice didn’t seem to notice Niall’s predicament, as it spoke up again.

“Up here,” repeated the voice, indicating for Niall to look up.

Niall took one last deep breath and finally looked up, his eyes immediately landing on the hair of the owner. It was that very wild, curly untamed hair, and it could only belong to one person: Harry Styles.

Harry was on the tree with, no surprise, his math textbook. His pants were slightly raised showing his black and red-stripped socks. And in spite of his nerves, Niall smiled softly because it was exactly what he pictured Harry wearing. Harry had probably picked up the first pair he saw -  not caring how it looked - and it reminded Niall of a cartoon character.

“What are you doing?” Niall asked, coughing after having realized that he had been staring at Harry for too long. It was embarrassing to Niall because he didn’t want Harry to think he was obsessed with him, but Harry didn’t appear to notice, as he was more preoccupied with what was in his book. He looked a lot much more comfortable than Niall, even though he was the one on a tree.

“Studying.” Harry said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

“In a tree?” Niall asked, observing the way Harry’s legs were dangling from two separate branches.

“Why not?” Harry asked him as if he were challenging him, eyes not moving from his book.

“Oh, I don’t know. Maybe it’s the fact that you aren’t on the ground. Couldn’t you fall down or something?” Niall questioned. The tree looked sturdy enough to hold Harry, but it was strange seeing someone studying on tree, although the fact that it was Harry kind of made sense because he did have the tendency to go against the norms.

“I’ve calculated it. Don’t worry about it, Horan.” There was a smug smile on Harry’s face, very rare for Niall to see, as his eyes refused to look away from his book.

“How can you be so sure?” Niall asked, voice quivering a bit. Harry shrugged, turning the page in his textbook.

“It’s math. Math is never wrong,” he said, causing Niall to frown.

 _What the heck did that mean?_ In some sort of parallel universe maybe math would never be wrong, but in this universe it was, Niall stubbornly thought. He glanced at Harry who was yawning while still reading.

He confused Niall to no ends, always finding a way to have Niall doubt things he would have never questioned before. No other person had the same effect that Harry had on Niall, and it troubled Niall because of the hidden implications that were under it.

Niall glanced at the curly haired boy and tensed up, due to the memory of his encounter with Harry those 4 years ago that was ever present in his mind. It remained the memory that most often came to his mind, although Niall wasn’t exactly sure why, but looking straight at Harry brought him the exact replications of those emotions.

Niall gulped. He _needed_ to get away.

Harry was scribbling away as Niall made an awkward and unsuccessful attempt to catch his attention with his hand. Seeing as that didn’t work, Niall cleared his throat and picked up his book, feeling like he was an intruder in Harry’s spot.

It wasn’t wrong to make that assumption because in the whole time since their conversation had started, Harry hadn’t even stopped to look at Niall. Niall thought it was Harry’s way of telling him to leave, and just as he was about to mumble out a “bye”, Harry interrupted him, as if he was racing to speak before Niall.

“Why aren’t you with your friends?” Harry quickly asked. Maybe a bit too quickly, Niall noticed, watching Harry write in his textbook.

“My friends?” Niall repeated, regretting it as soon at it came out of his mouth. He always made himself look like a nitwit whenever Harry was around, glad that Harry still appeared to be absorbed with what was in his book because it spared him some slight embarrassment.

“Yeah. Your friends," Harry nodded. "You know, those guys that you always hang around with.” Harry politely answered while highlighting a section in his textbook.

“You mean Liam and Louis?” Niall asked. Harry shrugged, turning the page once more. “I suppose. If those are their names,” he said in a pleased voice.

Niall swallowed, wishing there was a hole he could jump inside. It was exactly how he had expected the conversation to go, with Niall displaying exactly how awkward he felt with Harry so close.

But awkward or not, Harry took a small glance at Niall and offered him a small smile. “I mean, why aren’t you with them?” He had returned his gaze to his book, but appeared to be paying less attention than previously.

Niall thought about it. He could lie about it but there wasn’t really a point in doing that.

“Oh, I’m trying to study.” Niall paused, glancing at Harry who was still writing. “I’m struggling in math,” Niall somberly said. The statement alone was enough to get Harry to stop writing and finally look into Niall’s eyes.

“Is it limits?” Harry carefully asked, as if he was afraid that he would hurt Niall’s feelings, while refusing to break eye contact with Niall. It almost made Niall wish that he hadn’t stopped looking at his textbook, but he took a deep breath and returned Harry’s gaze.

“Yeah,” Niall replied, posture breaking down a bit. Discussing math with Harry would have intimidated him earlier in the week, but the way Harry was looking at him made him realize that Harry was probably one of the few people who could understand his predicament without any judgment or pity.

Niall swore he saw the pity in Louis’ eyes whenever Niall was called on, but Harry was different. He looked as if he understood exactly what Niall was going through, although there was no way he could because he was a genius, but Niall felt he could trust him. Or at least that was what he hoped.

Feeling that it would be easier to speak if he wasn’t looking directly at Harry, Niall dropped his gaze, revealing, “I was doing okay, but ever since last week I’ve been having trouble,” Niall said, pausing and choosing his words carefully.

“Ms. Adams told me that I need to study more, but I don’t even know where to begin.” Niall stopped, knowing that it wasn’t necessary to say more because Harry would understand. He didn’t feel as nervous as he felt before because it felt like a load of bricks were removed from his shoulders. It actually felt nice to be able to let out his worries with someone, even if it was someone that he barely talked to, that up until a couple of days ago Niall didn't ever envision himself talking to so casually.

Harry had been paying close attention to Niall, scratching the back of his head with a pensive look, nodding continuously. “Ms. Adams told me,” Harry quietly said, but still managing to sound incredibly loud to Niall’s ears.

“She had been a bit worried about you and approached me about a week ago. I told her I could tutor you, but yesterday she said you had already found someone,” Harry shyly said, although it was Niall who felt more embarrassed.

It was obvious that he had lied about having someone, and the worst part was that it was Harry who caught him. Niall pretended to cough, trying to buy time to find the words to apologize but Harry interrupted.

“Show me your book.“ Harry said in a much more confident tone that startled Niall, as he looked up at the boy in the tree, quirking a brow in disbelief.

"What?"

“Show me your book.” Harry repeated, watching Niall’s confused face as he closed his own book. Niall felt tempted to ask Harry why they couldn’t just use his book, but he noticed that Harry was reading a much more advanced version of his textbook. It wasn’t surprising to Niall, and he knew that he wouldn’t be able to solve a problem even if he tried.

“I can’t get up there,” Niall said as he glanced up at Harry. He would probably dislocate his arm by just trying to climb the tree, he thought. “It’s too high up for me,” Niall said, looking at Harry’s sitting position, wondering how Harry was able to get up there.

Harry let out a small chuckle. “Fine. I’ll go down there myself,” he said, making his way down. Niall raised his eyebrows, surprised at seeing Harry’s incredible coordination, because he looked like one of the most uncoordinated people in the world, yet he had no trouble getting down from the tree. He was definitely a lot more athletic than he let on.

“Show me the problem,” Harry said as he sat down. Niall followed his lead and shoved the book into Harry’s hands, glad to not have to look at the stupid book for a small second.

Harry adjusted his glasses, looking carefully at the problem, before taking a small breath and looking at Niall.

“Close your eyes,” he said in an authoritative voice. Niall blinked a couple times, wondering if he really heard him correctly.

“What does that have to do with math?” Niall asked, staring hard at Harry.

“Just do it,” said Harry, as he reached for Niall’s arm. Niall’s arm immediately froze up, suddenly unsure of what to do with his hand. Harry nudged him though, trying to get Niall to loosen up.

“Relax. Take a deep breath,” Harry said in a much more calming voice. Niall hesitantly nodded but closed his eyes, deciding that it was probably best to not think too much. It was a little hard for him to breathe because Harry was still holding on to his arm, but he kept repeating the mantra of “keep breathing” in his head.

It was hard to “relax” with Harry touching him, but eventually Niall did feel the tension exiting his body. He had always noticed Harry doing something similar before a test, but he thought that it was just another one of his unusual quirks and not an effective way to clear his mind, as it was proving to be with each breath he took, taking in the precious moment of silence he had long been stripped away from.

Harry gently squeezed Niall’s arm as if he was trying to make sure that Niall was really there.

“Whenever I feel stressed I close my eyes and take deep breaths,” Harry quietly said, running small circles on Niall’s arms. “I can never fully concentrate if I even feel slightly stressed. It’s how I’ve learned to take a test or how I apply it to everyday life.” His grip tightened on Niall’s arm, not significantly enough to hurt Niall, but enough to send a small shock in his body.

“You can get through this, Niall. Just relax,” Harry softly spoke.

Niall smiled, thankful for having chosen to stay and not run. In that moment he felt as though it was possible to conquer not only limits but also every other obstacle that set foot his way. It was probably the invincibility that comes from releasing all the negativity in his mind, but having Harry was enough reassurance to Niall. He took one final deep breath, telling himself that he would be okay, before opening his eyes.

Harry was looking directly at him with a small gentle smile on his face that Niall returned. They spent a couple of seconds looking at one another with an awkwardness that stemmed from their uncertainty before Niall withdrew his arm. The atmosphere was a lot less tense than before and it was exactly what Niall needed.

Harry readjusted his glasses and opened the book, grinning much more widely than before, Niall noticed.

“Well, then. Let’s get to work, Horan,” Harry cheerfully said, a familiarity in the way his eyes shine brightly at Niall when his lips curve upwards.

Niall grinned back instantly, unable to contain the smile on his face even if he wanted to.

 *

“Don’t freak out, Niall. You’ve been doing fine,” Harry said, looking at a very anxious Niall pacing back and forth while looking over his notes. “Just do what you’ve been doing and you should have no problem,” Harry offered, causing Niall to pause.

It had been 3 weeks since their first meeting, and it had become somewhat of a routine for them to meet up during lunch, with Niall always asking Harry an infinite amount of questions that Harry seemed pleased to answer. But then again, Harry always seemed to get like this whenever they talked about math, Niall reasoned, pushing out the insinuating thought from his head.

Niall let out a small smile thinking about how he initially tried avoiding it by adamantly telling Ms. Adams that he had a tutor, knowing very well that she was going to pair him with Harry, and how ironic it was that he was now the one pursuing Harry’s help.

Harry for his part seemed more than delighted, even objecting when Niall had told him that it wasn’t necessary and he didn’t need to do it if he didn’t want to. It was probably his way of trying to be nice, Niall thought, focusing back on his current predicament.

“That’s easy for you to say. You’re a genius at this!” Niall waved the papers in front of Harry, trying his best to get his point across. Harry looked at Niall, maintaining the image of complete serenity while taking out a jar of dried peaches from his bag. Niall quirked an eyebrow at Harry that Harry responded with a shrug.

It was one of the things Niall quickly learned about Harry. He had unusual habits and hobbies that he shamelessly displayed.

He liked to wear pairs of socks that didn’t match, he recited Hamlet, he watched the National Geographic channel, and he liked bringing a jar of peaches to school. Niall gaped at Harry the first time he saw him take out the jar, but Harry responded by smiling brightly at him, and that was the end of that. Niall found it, maybe just a little, just _maybe_ , endearing, but that was a whole different story.

“I wouldn’t go that far, Horan,” Harry mused, smiling softly, “You’ve been doing just fine. I’d even go as far as saying that I’m starting to rub off on you,” Harry jokingly said. Niall chuckled softly, silently thanking Harry for being able to break the tension he was feeling.

It was easy for them to do that now because Niall and Harry were at the point where it was okay for them to talk to each other without it being too formal, although never quite reaching the level of banter that Niall could have with Louis or Liam, but it was a huge jump from were they used to be.

“Modest much? I’d say that sitting in the front has done more help,” Niall replied, grinning widely. It was obviously a lie, because he wouldn’t have made any real progress if it weren’t for Harry. Even Ms. Adams was starting to take notice, smiling brightly whenever she saw Niall raise his hand to answer her questions. Niall had even teased Harry that maybe he would be known as the new “brain” of the class that Harry responded to with a fake pout.

Niall could still remember the priceless look on Harry’s face the day after their first meeting when he took the seat next to him. Harry had stopped writing, almost dropping his pencil, but regained his composure, smiling softly before turning his attention to the board. Niall couldn’t really remember what Ms. Adams taught that day because he was busy taking small glances at a flustered Harry.

Ever since that day it had become a ritual for them to sit next to each other and meet during lunch to discuss math, and no one questioned it. The only people who had asked him about were Louis and Liam, and when Niall told them Louis responded with a simple “oh,” and exchanged a knowing look with Liam. Niall would even go as far as saying that they looked pleased, but they thankfully didn’t question him after that.

“That hurts, Horan” Harry protested, finally opening his textbook. Niall’s smile faltered looking at Harry.

He had come to notice that Harry didn’t do nearly as much work whenever they were together. He always interrupted Harry whenever Harry was working on a problem, which turned into a lesson that took up their whole lunch.

Perhaps it would be classified as no big deal to anyone else but because there were some slight feelings on Niall's part, he felt that he was disrupting Harry from what he most loved. It was no secret that Harry loved math (tremendously so) and he wondered if Harry was just too polite to say something. There would probably come a time in which Harry would get tired of having him around. Maybe he already had, Niall thought, bringing an agonizing pain to his chest.

“Niall?” Harry asked in a worried voice that caused Niall to turn his attention to him. Harry’s eyes were filled with concern, probably mistaking Niall’s quietness for his stress over the test, as he took a seat next to Niall.

“Hey,” Harry whispered, nudging Niall with his shoulder. “You’ll be fine. I know it.” The sincerity in Harry’s voice touched Niall, but it also brought various knots to his stomach.

“How do you know?” Niall’s voice wavered slightly, wanting to be as confident as Harry when it came to math. He still doubted his skills and Harry knew it by the way Niall’s posture gave out whenever they discussed a mistake he had made, and how he brightened up whenever Harry gave him positive feedback. It was clear to him that Niall was sensitive about his math skills, but he always did his best to reassure Niall.

“You’re good at this, Niall. You really are.” Harry lifted his hand towards Niall’s back, but chickened out at the last moment, moving it to touch his hair instead.

“I’m not just saying this. I’ve seen you. You have no reason to doubt yourself.” Harry paused, taking in a small breath as his cheeks began to redden.

“I’ll always be here if you need my help.” Harry’s tone had changed into a more serious one, giving Niall the impression that it applied to more than just their math sessions.

Niall didn’t know how to answer, but he smiled at Harry and was relieved to see Harry return the smile. He ignored the familiar pang in his chest that had been there for the past 3 weeks (or longer if Niall admitted it to himself). It was easy to get lost into those feelings, especially when Harry said such nice things, but it was mixed with guilt. The guilt that Niall felt whenever he thought about how much of a nuisance he was being.

Niall exhaled softly but continued smiling.

“Besides, you have learned from the best, haven’t you?” Harry poked Niall’s side making Niall chuckle softly. He had come to learn that contrary to popular belief, Harry had a sense of humor. Harry was aware of the fact that he was gifted, but there was no arrogance in his way of approaching others, an arrogance that Niall saw in so many other students that weren’t nearly as smart as Harry. It was a fake arrogance that he presented to Niall, but even then, Niall could see it was more for comical purposes and only with him.

Niall returned the poke and nodded before resuming to look over his notes, feeling prepared with Harry at his side, who took his time to happily answer Niall’s questions, as Niall watched Harry smile widely at him.

*

Niall wasn’t surprised with the subject matter in the exam. Ms. Adams had given him sets of worksheets that she said the test would be “loosely” based on. It definitely made Niall feel much more prepared because the exam had limits (of course it did), but it didn’t bring much anxiety to Niall. He didn’t need any sort of guidance, solving each problem at a much faster pace than before. It was much easier than he anticipated, as he made his way to Ms. Adams’ classroom.

Niall had made an agreement with Ms. Adams that she would let Niall know his results that same day. She had a free class period and told Niall that she would grade his exam during the period, and that it would be ready by lunchtime.

Niall felt nervous walking into the class because the first thing he saw was Ms. Adams smiling and extending her arm to hand him his exam. It was always hard to tell with Ms. Adams if a smile was good or bad thing, but Niall graciously took the paper from her. He quickly turned around, not wanting to give her an opportunity to say anything in case he had done badly, but he heard her call out to him.

“Good job, Niall,” she said in a cheerful voice, pleased. Niall turned back, still not looking at his exam, to nod to Ms. Adams before heading out. He kept walking, afraid to look at his paper. He was reluctant but he decided that he might as well look to put himself out of misery, so with his heavy heart, Niall looked.

His hands were shaking, but what he saw was absolute perfection. It was a B.

With a fist bump and a leap into the air, Niall let out a sign of relief.

 _He had done it_. He had proven himself to Ms. Adams, but most importantly, to _himself_. With all the pride in the world he raced across the hall, knowing exactly where he needed to be.

*

“This is great Niall! Really great!” Harry exclaimed as he continued examining Niall’s exam.

“Thanks,” muttered a slightly embarrassed Niall. He had been worried that Harry was going to be disappointed that he didn’t get a higher grade, but his dimples were on full display when Niall showed him his exam.

“You did really well. All you did was make some small mistakes. Like this one.” Harry had taken out his pencil and started explaining to Niall, but Niall wasn’t paying much attention because although he had felt relieved with the results, there was now a loud thud in his chest due to the way his reality was starting to kick in : there was no longer an excuse to be near Harry.

It had been the only way for Niall to spend time with him, and now that he was significantly better, Harry would no longer want to spend time together. He was probably even happy now that he would no longer have to tutor Niall, because he would finally be able to work on his math again, although he wouldn’t say it to Niall’s face. Harry was too kind for that, and although he had told him he would be there for him, Niall felt that it was probably Harry just being Harry. He was much too sweet to do otherwise, and there was no other explanation for it in Niall’s eyes.

Harry turned his head to face Niall, smiling softly. “Do you understand?” he brightly asked.

Niall nodded, answering with a false cheerfulness in his smile, knowing things wouldn’t be the same.

“I understand.”

*

Niall didn't go to the spot the next day. And the day after that. And also the day after that.

He had made the attempt to go but his mind told him it was for the best, because he was distracting Harry and Harry didn’t need that. Niall had even stopped sitting next to Harry altogether.

Niall knew that it was a bit selfish of him not offering Harry an explanation, but he didn’t know what to say to him. How could he say, “I am sorry for invading your space and keeping you away from math,” without it sounding ridiculous? It sounded ridiculous even to Niall but it was how he felt, and he didn’t want Harry to feel obligated for anything.

Except...Seeing the hurt on Harry’s face made him think otherwise.

Niall swore he could see a gut-wrenching pain in Harry’s eyes when he entered class the following day and walked straight to the back. It was uncomfortable for Niall not only because of the glances that Harry gave him, but also because of the glances that Liam and Louis gave him too, questioning the sudden change in Niall’s attitude.

Niall dealt with it the only way he could: avoidance. He lowered his head whenever he caught Harry looking at him, and avoided all contact with Harry, although it wasn’t like Harry didn’t try to reach out.

Harry tried speaking to Niall after class, but Niall would either stay after class asking Ms. Adams questions for an extra long time to the point where he had to sprint to class, or he would leave right after class. It worked extremely well because the halls would get crowded, allowing limited chances for Harry to find Niall.

Niall had even started spending more time in the library as a way to avoid Liam and Louis, because when they learned about what he had done, they had shouted at him and told him he was being a “knob.” Niall didn't say anything about it though, because he agreed with it whole-heartedly.

He knew he was being a knob, but he kept telling himself it was for the best. There wasn’t a point to keep trying, but whenever he caught Harry’s eye and saw the same familiar disappointment that had been there those 4 years ago, he had to tell himself that it was for the best.

 _Definitely for the best_ , Niall repeated, looking away from Harry’s beautiful green eyes.

_

“So maybe it’s old, but what does it matter? Halloween continues being one of the best horror movies. Right, Niall?” Louis asked a expressionless Niall.

“Right,” Niall muttered, not caring if he came off as sounding like a zombie. Louis sighed nudging Liam, and Liam took it as his sign to interfere.

“Niall?” Liam carefully asked.

Niall looked at Liam, wondering why they kept distracting him. “Uh-huh. Yes. Best movie,” Niall nonchalantly mumbled.

Louis grunted, unable to contain his emotions any longer. They had dealt with a moody Niall for about a week and enough was enough.

“What’s with you?” Louis grumpily asked, tone harsh and drenched with irritation. 

Niall frowned, not understanding what Louis was trying to say, words very hard to formulate when he's not quite sure what it is that he wants to say. He lets out a breath, conveying his exhaustion.

“What do you mean? I’m good. Everything’s fine,” Niall flatly replied, sounding everything but fine and what he's foolishly trying to vocalize.

Louis barked out a loud laugh, shaking his head in disagreement. “Niall, Niall, _Niall_. We know that’s not true. You’re obviously not okay,” he breathed out, pity beginning to formulate in his eyes.

Niall arched up his eyebrows, wondering where was Louis going with this, but stays quiet, eyes silently asking Louis to keep talking.

Never one to back away from talking, Louis let out a small breath, face looking very tired. “Ever since last week...with the whole Harry situation...you-”

“That doesn’t have anything to do with this,” Niall cut in fiercely, the ferocity in his voice catching Louis off guard.

“But you-”

“I’m fine Louis. I’m fine!” Niall repeated, more for himself than for Louis. Liam and Louis remained quiet waiting for Niall to speak, but Niall only grunted.

He was losing his temper in front of his friends without any real reason. He needed to get away if he wanted to avoid a big silly argument that he knew he would end up regretting; it would be so stupid of them to talk when he was acting this moronically.

Liam cautiously looked at Niall and opened his mouth but Niall turned to the opposite direction, putting on a faux smile that did a better job of resembling a snarl.

 _Damn this_ , Niall thought, attempting to shake the tension in his shoulders as he gathered his things.

“I forgot my textbook. We’ll talk later.” Niall muttered as he hastily made his way to Ms. Adams’ room.

“Niall!” he heard Liam call out but Niall didn’t stop. He needed to get away, even if it was in that one place he loathed. It was his only viable option, he thought, taking in a deep breath.

_

When Niall reached Ms. Adams’ room, he _wasn’t_ surprised to see her busy marking up papers with a grin on her face - no doubt cherishing each time her red pen touched a paper.

Niall wanted to turn and walk away, but he really did leave his textbook in her class and needed it to study, so he took a small pause before knocking on her door.

“Well, hello Horan.” Ms. Adams said in a joyful tone as she watched Niall, scribbling a grade on one of the various sheets on her desk.

“Hi, Ms. Adams.” Niall said in a much more flat tone as he entered. “I just came here for my book.” Niall pointed at his desk as Ms Adams nodded. He took it as a sign to proceed, and reached for his book when he heard Ms. Adams speak.

“How's class going for you?” she asked him as she continued marking the paper of some poor soul.

Niall glanced at the wall, thinking about his overall progress. “It’s been good. I’m finally getting it.” Niall answered, genuinely pleased that he didn’t have to resort to lying.

Ms. Adams smiled. “I’m glad you are. I was really worried about you,” she said but laughed, words appearing to not match the sentiment she's just expressed.

 _Well. At least she’s honest_ , Niall thought, smiling softly. “Me too, but it’s much better now,” he said, pleased that at least they weren’t having the discussion about how horrible he was at math.

Ms. Adams smiled, eyes trained on the papers. “Harry tells me that you’ve been doing fantastically,” she said calmly, but the revelation almost makes Niall almost drop the book on the floor from hearing his name.

Ms. Adams doesn't notice though because she's still preoccupied with the papers in front of her, but Niall felt as if the blood in his body had stopped flowing and that there was not enough air in his body.

“He seemed like a proud teacher,” she added. Niall awkwardly placed the book to his chest and took a couple of steps towards Ms. Adams’ desk. It probably wasn’t a smart move for him to talk about Harry, but he was anxious to know more and knew that Ms. Adams wouldn’t question his feelings.

“From what I can tell, you two have become close friends.” Ms. Adams paused and switched to another paper. “He always did say he would be happy to help you,” she offhandedly added.

Niall gulped, trying to find his voice. “Really?” he questioned, breath hitching in his throat.

Ms. Adams nodded fiercely at that. "Harry has always been an interesting character. He a bit of an oddball, but I’m glad you guys have been able to become good friends. He’s one you can depend on.” Ms. Adams said, glancing at Niall, eyes going wide when she catches sight of his face.

“Are you okay, Niall?”

The color on Niall’s cheeks had disappeared, but he cleared his throat and smiled at Ms. Adams. “Yes, Ms. Adams. I’m great.” Niall paused, trying to find a smile that would convince Ms. Adams that he was okay.

“I’ve always been a bit of an oddball too,” he said in a joking manner, masking away the fact that he could feel his insides threatening to fall out of his body.

And it worked quite well too because Ms. Adams let out a small laugh.

“I would have to agree with that, Horan,” she said as she smiled widely at him. Niall stood there politely as Ms. Adams resumed marking the exams.

“Now get out of here so I can finish this,” Ms. Adams said, offering him one of her twisted smiles that Niall returned, noting that she wasn’t as crazy as he had thought.

*

“Ah Niall! So good of you to join us.” called out a joyful Louis, as Niall took his seat next to Liam. He took in a small breath, waiting for the slaughtering to begin.

“We need your help with something,” Louis said, showing Niall a picture of a pirate and vampire costume, seemingly oblivious. “What do you think? Vampire or pirate?” he asked as Niall gaped looking straight into Louis ‘eyes because... 

This _wasn't_ how he expected things to go, considering their last conversation. It wasn't...he...

Why was Louis acting so casually?

“Louis…” Niall spoke, voice breaking, unlike his typical joking tone, making Louis’ smile falter in response.

“About earlier-” Niall began but Louis shook his hand, dismissing Niall.

“Its ok. Really,” Louis added, smiling wearily at a skeptical looking Niall, only making Niall feel worse, feeling like a jerk for having shut off his friends so harshly because it wasn’t _their_ fault that he had been in such a bad mood. If anything, they had been the ones distracting Niall from it - a fact that Niall was completely aware of.

“It’s not,” Niall said, shaking his head and looking at Louis and Liam. “I was a complete jerk and you guys don’t deserve that.”

Louis and Liam were quiet, but they nodded politely and waited for Niall to continue.

Niall looked to his right and studied their faces, exhaling, knowing that he needed be clear this time around when he reveals, “I was just upset,“ grumbling, thinking of Harry.

"I’ve _been_ upset.” Niall’s voice gave out just how tired he was, clearly still difficult for him to talk about it, but he wanted to be as honest as he could be.

“You were right about me. I’ve been different ever since…” Niall gulped loudly, his jaw tightening. “Last week,” he finished reluctantly.

“It’s just something that I need more time with before I can actually talk about,” Niall muttered. He looked directly at Louis and hoped that for now it would be enough. It was all a bit too fresh on his mind, and he felt that he would break down if he even muttered _his_ name.

It was strange behavior of Niall - even he could acknowledge that - because it wasn’t like he ever had anything with Harry. It wasn't like they had been anything more than acquaintances and _possible_ friends.

...But, still. It felt as if it had been a disastrous breakup that he couldn’t recover from because his time with Harry had taught him about himself, and although it was different and exciting, it still freaked him out. Worried him even, because he didn't think that _that -_ those feelings - were possible, as the strong sense of regret filled him now, sadly smiling at his friends.

Niall remained silent as Liam and Louis looked at him with compassionate expressions.

“You can tell us when you feel ready,” Liam spoke, patting Niall’s back, grinning softy at him to give Niall reassurance. “Take the time you need, Niall. We’ll be here for you.”

His words were greatly appreciated from Niall, who offered Liam a forced smile, remembering the words that Harry had told him. They were incredibly similar and like a blade to his heart.

Liam and Louis looked at one another and tightened their grip on Niall.

“You couldn’t get rid of us if you tried,” Louis proclaimed, running his hands in Niall’s hair, messing it up in the process, and causing Niall to let out a chuckle against his own will. It had been a while since he actually laughed because he had been stuck on the Harry situation, but it was undoubtedly what he needed.

“I’ve tried, believe me,” Niall returning the banter and the favor by swatting Louis' hand.

“Oh, aren’t you funny?” Louis flatly said but smiling at him, as Niall lightly gave Liam a fist bump, seemingly agreeing with Niall’s statement about getting rid of Louis.

He had been foolish in so many ways, but he had to _stop_ pushing away people, especially people who mattered to him. It wouldn’t bring him any good, Niall knew, as Louis gave them a disapproving look but resumed showing Liam the costume pictures.

Niall chuckled softly, running his fingers through the spine of his textbook. He would be okay as long as he had them with him, he reasoned, flipping the pages of the book with his fingers.

Niall ran the pages with his fingers but paused when he saw a paper hanging in between one of the pages.

Confused, Niall looked at it, trying to remember when he had put in the paper in his textbook. It did look familiar but it didn’t have to do anything with what they had been discussing in class either.

Niall hummed, squinting when he studies the paper carefully, knowing that he had seen it before.

But, _wait_.

 _Of course it looks familiar_ , he thought, realization making his heart pound loudly. It was the same paper he had accidentally taken from Harry those 4 years ago. The name had been erased, but Niall could see the faint existence of the pencil marks that outlined the name Harry Styles.

Questions swirled in Niall’s head as he studied the paper. It had been an accident those 4 years ago, but why was it now in his textbook? There must be a reason for it, or at the very least Harry wanted him to see it. It was no coincidence that it was appearing in his textbook after those 4 years, he thought, beginning to work on the sheet.

Louis and Liam were too preoccupied arguing over the costume (with Louis complaining that he would be a great Dracula while Liam pointed out that it was too safe), that they didn’t notice Niall eagerly working on the worksheet. He had felt tired, but just seeing anything slightly associated with Harry woke him up.

Niall looked at the letter and figures, not wanting to miss any details, as he began trying to decipher the phrase. He only had 3 letters but the phrase had 8 words so he figured it couldn’t be too bad. It was even a little too easy for him, he noticed, matching more numbers with letters. Niall was now at 5 letters, consisting of an L,E, I, O, U that resembled the phrase-

Niall immediately stopped, his cheeks drained from their color because...this was Harry’s paper.

It was Harry’s paper and it was saying…it was saying that _he loved him_.

It had been there in Niall’s hands all those years ago, and now it was here again in his sweaty hands, getting up too quickly and clumsily almost tripping over his own feet, every ounce of emotion making its way known to his cheeks. 

Liam and Louis stopped talking immediately, looking at a very red-faced Niall.

“Niall, are you okay?” They both looked concerned for him, and with reason because he looked a little crazy.

“Yeah, I’m fine,” Niall muttered, grabbing the paper and his things quickly.

“Where are you going?” asked Louis but Niall only smiled at them, not bothering to answer.

He knew that there would be time for him to tell them the whole story - the twisted but _amazing_ story - but right now he only had once place he needed to be at.

Niall sprinted away from them as fast as he could, missing the high-five that was exchanged between Liam and Louis.

_

Niall ran at such a speed that he could feel the muscles in his legs tense up, no doubt in his mind that he would be sore later on, but he needed to find him. _He wanted to_. He just hoped he wasn’t too late, as he sprinted to the field, passing the blue bleachers, when he heard a quiet voice call out to him.

“You’re finally here,” said the voice, expectant but tired.

Niall came to an abrupt pause at that, breathing heavily, paper still in hand.

Niall, trying to control his breathing, turned quickly, knowing the exact owner, expression softening when he caught sight of Harry.

Harry looked relaxed sitting on the bleachers, but Niall couldn’t help but noticed that he looked a lot more guarded, posture not as eased as it normally was. Niall winced, knowing that Harry had reason to do so, as he walked closer to him.

There was a long silence between them, with Niall not even knowing where to begin, but he was aware that it was all in his hands. Harry had taken the first step and now it was his turn.

“Is this true?” he quietly asked, failing to work up to asking the question as he had originally planned because he _needed_ to know. "Is it?" He waved the paper in his hands while carefully watching Harry, trying to read the emotions on Harry’s face. The wall was still visible and separating the two boys from each other, but it was as thin as glass and could crumble down in any minute.

“Well, hello to you too. It’s been a while,” Harry responded. He looked a lot more composed than Niall, but the quiver in his voice showed just how nervous he was.

“You’ve been avoiding me,” Harry stated. There was no anger in his voice, but there was a trace of sadness beginning to appear in his eyes. It made Niall’s own chest hurt thinking about the pain he had caused Harry, wishing that he could erase it all from his gorgeous eyes. He looked a lot more broken now that Niall had taken a proper glance at him.

“I’m sorry about that. I _really_ am.” Niall breathed out, regret barring in his voice. "There’s no other explanation except that I’m an idiot,” Niall said, trying to convey his sincerity.

“I’ve been an idiot.”

Harry broke their contact but stood up, moving closer to Niall as Niall stood still. He was at an arm’s length away from Niall, which Niall wanted to close but was afraid that would scare Harry off.

Instead, he patiently stood there waiting for Harry to do something, and when he finally looked at him, Niall could see the deep adoration. Niall studied Harry’s face, not knowing how he didn’t notice sooner because it had _always_ been there.

It was there when Harry affectionately called Niall a jerk as he smiled encouragingly at him, or whenever he offered him one of his dried peaches. _It was always there_. Problem was, Niall had been so blind and didn't understand.

 _So, so blind,_ Niall thought, eyes widening when Harry takes a breath as if bracing himself.

“It’s true,” Harry finally said, voice cracking but refusing to back away.

Niall watched Harry with delirious eyes, hoping that he wasn’t hearing wrong.

“The part where I said I’m an idiot?” Niall asked, regaining his breath.

Harry fidgeted with his watch, blinking a couple of times, but fervently nodded.

“I mean the idiot part is true too,“ Harry took a small breath. "But your question, it’s true,” Harry finished, cheeks very pink.

Niall paused, taking in Harry’s lovely face. He was so dumb, he thought to himself, closing the gap between them, and taking Harry’s hand with his own.

Harry looked away, seemingly choosing to avoid Niall’s eyes, but cupped Harry's face with his hands, willing Harry to look at him.

“All this time?” Niall softly asked Harry, as his warm breath hit Harry’s face.

Harry was a blushing mess but nodded, still avoiding Niall’s eyes. Niall ran his hand down Harry’s neck, feeling Harry’s pulse quickening, but gently stroked him to calm him down. _Always_ , Niall thought, as he leaned forward to touch Harry’s lips.

It was awkward kissing Harry because Harry was moving too much and filled with hesitation, and their noses kept bumping against each other. There was too much saliva and not a lot of technique, but it was incredibly right. They way Harry was moving his lips was as if he was afraid that he was doing it wrong, choosing to follow Niall’s lead, and Niall moved his lips to reassure Harry, just like Harry had done so many times for him in math.

Niall wasn’t an expert at kissing, but if he had to describe the perfect kiss this would be it because it was with Harry. Everything about their history made it that much more special, as they finally broke apart and heavily breathed through their mouths.

Harry smiled as his glasses touched Niall’s forehead. Niall gently moved Harry’s hair, caressing his scalp. “Me too,” Niall took a small breath, fondly watching Harry.

“I love you too,” Niall whispered against Harry’s lips, as he gave him a chaste kiss.

Harry beamed and leaned forward, nose resting on Niall’s nose. “Finally,” Harry whispered, gently cupping Niall’s cheeks.

“I was afraid that it was all in my head,” Harry breathed hot air against Niall’s lips. Niall smiled softly, peering into Harry’s eyes, admiring how the green looked impossibly more beautiful up close.

“It wasn’t,” Niall admitted, gently rolling his finger in one of Harry’s curls, voicing his fondness freely. Harry chuckled, moving his hand down to Niall’s neck as his thumb gently ran small circles on Niall’s pulse point, tickling Niall in the process.

“I just didn’t know because you’ve always been oblivious to what’s in front of you,” Harry said as he gave Niall a small peck.

“Why didn’t you tell me sooner?” Niall asked, grimacing after realizing the foolishness of his question.

“I did,” Harry grinned slightly. “ _Twice_ ," he said, locking eyes with Niall. "Years ago when I gave you the paper, and when I told you that I would always be there for you.”

Niall parted his lips, surprise taking over his face, but Harry continued. "You just didn’t pay attention. I would have thought it was obvious by then.” Harry smiled, timidly running a finger on Niall’s lips. “You are a bit oblivious,” Harry affectionately repeated.

Niall leaned into Harry’s touch and looked into those eyes that hypnotized him. “I might be, but you’re so hard to read. I could only see your emotions whenever you talked about math.”

“You just need to pay more attention, Horan,” Harry said, slightly grinning, and Niall can tell from the crinkles near Harry's eyes that he's delighted - the happiest Niall's ever seen him.

“How corny,” Niall teased a blushing Harry. It would have been a shock to anyone just how sappy things had gotten and maybe some would think it was all rushed, but looking at their history they would know that it was long overdue.

“Only with you,” Harry said, connecting their lips. Their lips moved in the same motion, as if they were magnets that couldn’t disconnect. Niall ran his tongue into Harry’s mouth savoring each moment. It seemed that now that they had kissed they couldn’t go a minute without doing so, and Niall was okay with that, as he smiled into the kiss.

Niall softly bit Harry’s bottom lip, wanting to explore more, but Harry broke the kiss, unable to continue with a lingering thought trapped in his head.

“About what you said earlier,” Harry breathlessly said. Niall smirked, knowing where Harry was going with this.

“What?” asked Niall in a teasing manner. Harry’s face was redder than before, and Niall could practically feel the warmth from Harry’s rosy cheeks.

“You know,” muttered Harry, not wanting to look at Niall, who was having too much fun teasing Harry.

“Do I?” Niall innocently asked. He wasn’t going to let Harry off that easily. It was much more fun this way.

“Well, um…”

“Well?” Niall teased, enjoying seeing Harry tongue-tied. He was never like this, especially not in his classes, but Niall took pity on him and gave him what he hoped was an encouraging smile.

There was a small pause before Harry took a deep breath and said, “how much?”

“How much what?” Niall asked, the smile evident on his face.

Harry let out a small breath, trying to find the courage to ask the question that was bothering him.

“How much do you love me?” Harry asked as he timidly looked Niall in the eyes.

Niall smiled. Harry was a bit hesitant about these things, but Niall knew exactly what to say to make him fully understand.

“The limit does not exist,” Niall said, putting his arms around Harry’s neck.

Harry looked shell-shocked for about 10 seconds, struggling to formulate words with that genius brain of his, until settling with the only suitable response needed, recovering shortly and pulling Niall by his shirt towards him to connect their lips.

And, well. Niall happily sighed into the kiss, thinking that maybe math wasn’t that bad after all.

*

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading. And if you want to come and say hello or just talk, I'm [here](http://arie-172.tumblr.com/).


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